First smartphone... help...thx

[looper]

Long-time PC computer guy about to get FIRST smartphone... I know, I know... I'm old, so be nice...

As I am home (on the PC) most of the time, I only have low data requirements when out and about. I've pretty much settled on Ting (I am in southern New England), and trying to decide on the phone... I really like the new, big phones and have narrowed down to the iPhone 6+, the Nexus 6, or the Galaxy Note 4. I do have large hands.

Thoughts/suggestions appreciated....

 

[paperwastage]

Which Ting are you looking at? GSM(T-mobile) or CDMA (Sprint)? Most likely CDMA if you are in NE

CDMA is a lot more complicated (Sprint/Ting has a lot of different rules on whether a phone qualifies), while GSM is easier (as long as it's unlocked or locked-to-T-mobile, and compatible with T-mobile bands, you're good)

What's your budget?

For <$250 on GSM, there's LG G2, Xperia Z Ultra, Moto E/G LTE....
but if you want a Sprint phone, it's harder to find a cheap new phone but easier to find a cheap used phone (less demand for Sprint used phones)

 

[looper]

T-Mobile, and price not a problem on unlocked phone purchase... phones in the running I have listed.

 

[paperwastage]

Go to a store and play with those phones... you might want a big phone if your hands are big, but a slightly smaller phone would work better for one-handed operations

Not sure how tech-savvy you are... if you want something that just "works" out of the box, iPhone 6+ without a question...

if you want something to tinker with(and can modify/upgrade easily), then Nexus 6 (and you can move to ANY provider in the future - att/tmobile/sprint/verizon) ... If you want a pen to jot down notes, then Note 4

Another question: Do you know how good T-mobile reception is in your area? T-mobile has band 12 in southern new england, and Nexus 6/Note 4 will have VoLTE and can make use of band 12.

http://ae2.spectrumgateway.com/t-mobile-700-mhz-spectrum.html

 

[razel]

In my opinion and friends/family/co-worker's real world experience if you are a guy and put your phone in your pocket, 6" phones will break. 5" is when things get borderline. Not all guys situations are the same and since it's your 1st smartphone, get a feel for these different sized phones through your friends or family. In my case, I found 4.5-4.7 to be perfect. My phone is a 5" right now and only reason why I love it is it's cheap, fast, always updated. If I do break it, Nexus 5's run $250-$350.

 

[blackdogdeek]

Have you checked out the OnePlus One?

 

[sweenish]

In my opinion and friends/family/co-worker's real world experience if you are a guy and put your phone in your pocket, 6" phones will break. 5" is when things get borderline. Not all guys situations are the same and since it's your 1st smartphone, get a feel for these different sized phones through your friends or family. In my case, I found 4.5-4.7 to be perfect. My phone is a 5" right now and only reason why I love it is it's cheap, fast, always updated. If I do break it, Nexus 5's run $250-$350.

What pocket, how are they breaking? What phones?

Being a guy with a Nexus 5 in my front right pocket has never been an issue. I wear slim fit (straight leg, not skinny) jeans and dockers. About 5' 10". Nothing "borderline" about it.

I've not tried to pocket a phone like the N6, so I can't speak to that. I don't see it being a problem, though.

 

[looper]

T-Mobile iPhone6+ unlocked on Ting the way I'm leaning now.... but, dang, it's @ $150. more than the Nexus 6.... can that be justified?

 

[Achtung!]

In my opinion: Galaxy Note 4 > iPhone 6+ > Nexus 6 > OnePlus One

The reason why I say this is that the iPhone 6+ is way too bulky and the bezels are too large for the screen size.

Both the Galaxy Note 4 and iPhone 6+ have metal frames. However The Galaxy Note 4 has a leatherette back and the iPhone 6+ has an aluminum back. If you have no strong preferences for build materials, get the Galaxy Note 4. Better screen (2K vs 1K), superior screen:bezel ratio, higher quality camera (16MP vs 8MP - MP count isn't everything but also the actual PQ is better according to many reviews), and better specs overall.

However if you're used to iOS, then get the iPhone 6+.

And the $150 extra for the iPhone 6+ over the Nexus 6 is not justified. If that's a concern, I would get the Nexus 6 in a heartbeat. Better screen (2K vs 1K), superior screen:bezel ratio, higher quality camera (13MP vs 8MP), etc.

 

[Oyeve]

In my opinion: Galaxy Note 4 > iPhone 6+ > Nexus 6 > OnePlus One

The reason why I say this is that the iPhone 6+ is way too bulky and the bezels are too large for the screen size.

Both the Galaxy Note 4 and iPhone 6+ have metal frames. However The Galaxy Note 4 has a leatherette back and the iPhone 6+ has an aluminum back. If you have no strong preferences for build materials, get the Galaxy Note 4. Better screen (2K vs 1K), superior screen:bezel ratio, higher quality camera (16MP vs 8MP - MP count isn't everything but also the actual PQ is better according to many reviews), and better specs overall.

However if you're used to iOS, then get the iPhone 6+.

And the $150 extra for the iPhone 6+ over the Nexus 6 is not justified. If that's a concern, I would get the Nexus 6 in a heartbeat. Better screen (2K vs 1K), superior screen:bezel ratio, higher quality camera (13MP vs 8MP), etc.

I agree with this statement.

 

[looper]

Darn it............ Down to either the iPhone 6+ or the Nexus 6........... #GoingCrazy...

 

[poofyhairguy]

Darn it............ Down to either the iPhone 6+ or the Nexus 6........... #GoingCrazy...

Interesting options, to me those represent the polar opposite edges of the market. The only really similiar thing about them (other than the size) is the fact that they will probably get OS updates longer than anything else in the market.

Seems like an easy choice to me:

Do you care about the camera a lot? Do you want a turnkey experience? Are you deep into the Apple ecosystem otherwise (aka have a Macbook, AppleTV, etc.)? Do you want an Apple Watch? Yes to any of those and the answer is an iPhone.

Do you plan to do a lot of web browsing on the phone? Do you like to experiment and tinker with things? Do you want the option to move to a new carrier easily later on? Do you want an Android Wear device? If its yes to that list pick the Nexus.

Don't go crazy, it should be an easy choice. This isn't Ford or Chevy, more like Fiat and Hummer.

 

[looper]

"Do you want the option to move to a new carrier easily later on? .....If it's yes to that list pick the Nexus."

How is it easier, later on if necessary, to move to new carrier w/ a Nexus 6 than w/ the iPhone 6+ ?

 

[soccerballtux]

"Do you want the option to move to a new carrier easily later on? .....If it's yes to that list pick the Nexus."

How is it easier, later on if necessary, to move to new carrier w/ a Nexus 6 than w/ the iPhone 6+ ?

unsure about the 6+ but the N6 is carrier unlocked from the start meaning you just pop another SIM in. Additionally it supports CDMA so you can call up Sprint and...wait nobody does that.

You can easily hop between t-mobile, at&t, and other MVNOs with the unlocked SIM slots.

SUPPOSEDLY the 6+ has the radio for all of the above in every phone sold, I didn't look into it further cause I don't care. I just saw some threads about it. you'd have to google more. man I've gotten lazy. sorry I can't help

 

[sweenish]

If you care about the camera, an extra three bucks for Manual Camera will give you a great experience on N6.

It's seriously night and day for me with N5. It's fast, pictures come out great, AND I get DNG files for serious tinkering if I choose.

 

[paperwastage]

"Do you want the option to move to a new carrier easily later on? .....If it's yes to that list pick the Nexus."

How is it easier, later on if necessary, to move to new carrier w/ a Nexus 6 than w/ the iPhone 6+ ?

The nexus 6 model sold within the USA will work on any provider (the big 4 + most mvnos)

For the iPhone 6/6+, you HAVE to get the unlocked model directly from the apple store(which is the sprint version and is unlocked) to get support for sprint(and the other big 3)

If you get an(unlocked) Verizon/T-Mobile/att model, it won't work on sprint, but will work on verizon/tmobile/att

http://store.apple.com/us/browse/overlay/iphone/about_unlocked

Also, T-Mobile is starting to roll out band 12 LTE, their low frequency band for building penetration. Nexus 6 supports this, iPhone doesn't

 

[looper]

Got the unlocked Nexus 6 (64GB) (GSM) from the Google store along with Ting.

Having fun, and lots to learn.

 

[Commodus]

Congrats on the Nexus 6 -- you'll probably like it a lot.

One clarification on the Nexus 6 pricing, though: Google prices the Nexus 6 at $650 because it sells Nexus phones at or just above cost. Apple, Samsung and others charge what they do because they're trying to make a profit -- Google's approach wouldn't be sustainable for just about everyone else.

 

[razel]

Absolutely love... Ting. Fully featured service. Reminds me of cellular service in Asia. You can do everything and they charge you accordingly. Favorite thing so far is the hotspot and how nimble they are with SIM number changes within your account. Just shocking great how modern they are compared to how limiting U.S. carriers are. Ting is owned by Tucows and they are based in Canada.

 

[looper]

... Ting. Favorite thing so far is the hotspot...

Huh? What do you mean?

 

[RossMAN]

Huh? What do you mean?

https://ting.com/blog/turn-your-computer-into-a-wireless-hotspot/

 

[looper]

https://ting.com/blog/turn-your-computer-into-a-wireless-hotspot/

DOH, WiFi calls... forgot about that. I'm new to this 'smartphone' stuff. Thx.

 

[razel]

You can use your phone as a WiFi router for your iPads, tablets, etc. Internet comes through your 3G/4G data. Nearly all U.S. carriers charge you extra for this. Others get around it by rooting their phone to get around the extra charge with 'rouge' hotspot applications. Ting doesn't do that silliness because you already for pay the amount of data you use. Very smart... well not smart... just the common sense thing to do honestly.

By the way you're lucky.... You are starting off with one of the best cellular services available in the U.S. It's all downhill from here.

 

[lopri]

I had so much fun with my first Nexus devices (4 and 7). Frustrating at times, but rewarding of course. It is a lovely experience no doubt.

 

[looper]

Problem that I'm noticing ALREADY............

I'm getting CRAZY DL'ing + buying APP's for the N6.... SHEESH....